How Analytics Tech Can Boost Stadiums’ Energy Efficiency

Phil Goldstein is a web editor for FedTech and BizTech. Besides keeping up with the latest in technology trends, he is also an avid lover of the New York Yankees, poetry, photography, traveling and escaping humidity.

When English soccer team Tottenham Hotspur opens its new state-of-the-art stadium later this year for the 2018-2019 Premier League season, it won’t just be a gleaming new multipurpose arena with a fully retractable grass pitch. It will be a very smart one, too.

In March, the club announced a partnership with energy management company Schneider Electric to be the official stadium management supplier for the North London arena. The centerpiece of the partnership is Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure platform, which will provide real-time energy monitoring and preventative maintenance, and potentially allow the club to provide customized heating and lighting arrangements for fans.

The partnership is an indication that advances in technology, especially ones that connect IT and operational technology, can allow sports teams and stadium operators to boost energy efficiency, save money, aid the environment and deliver a better experience to fans all at the same time.

Tech Platform Gives Insights into Stadium Operations

As part of their agreement, Schneider Electric will distribute the power supply and integrate key systems at the stadium, which is part of the larger Northumberland Development Project. “The energy management and building management solutions provided by Schneider Electric will play a key role in delivering energy and operational efficiencies, supporting the Club’s vision of delivering the ultimate experience for every visitor to its new world-class stadium,” Tottenham and Schneider say in a statement.

“Schneider Electric is a leading provider of energy and building management systems and we are delighted to announce its role in the stadium project,” Matthew Collecott, director of operations for Tottenham Hotspur, says in a statement. “We have the upmost confidence in its ability to deliver a best-in-class energy management system, which will power one of the most technologically advanced stadiums in the world.”

An artistic rendering of Tottenham Hotspur's new stadium, which will open for the 2018-2019 Premier League season. Photo: Tottenham Hotspur

The EcoStruxure platform is the digital backbone that connects operational technology solutions with the latest in IT and will be embedded into the stadium’s architecture. Schneider says the platform “will provide real-time monitoring for preventative maintenance and personalize visitor experiences, including aspects such as temperature and lighting conditions.”

Further, the company says, the stadium’s electrical infrastructure will be monitored constantly from Schneider Electric’s remote field services bureau. Schneider’s web-based Building Analytics software will perform checks on the stadium’s systems every five minutes, totaling 60,000 checks every hour onsite. And the company says its product experts will also be onsite “to personally monitor the stadium’s power infrastructure on match days and in the build-up to any special events.”

The stadium will accommodate 62,062 seats and will host not only Spurs games but other major events as well. Game days and days when events will take place often put stress on stadiums’ energy management systems, networks and IT infrastructure.

Mike Hughes, UK and Ireland zone president of Schneider Electric, says in a statement that by embracing digitization and automation “the stresses associated with hosting and attending live events can be alleviated. Together, we will develop a next-generation customer experience for sports fans; one that is only achievable with the latest technology.”